“I would have liked to see my mom again,” she murmured. “I would have liked that very much.” Then she closed her eyes.
I closed the door to the infirmary and rushed back to Astra. The tears spilled down my face as I slammed into my home. I didn’t know where to go, I didn’t know what to do with myself. I was simply overwhelmed by sadness. Flailing, I darted for the ballroom. Even though it would never be MY own room, I somehow always felt most at home there among the artifacts. I needed to see them, see the Mirror and know they were safe.
Betsy was battered and bruised. Who knew when she would wake up again.
I entered the room and everything was just as it always had been. The windows streamed in sunlight and the impressive thrones sat waiting. I rubbed my cheeks, trying to get rid of the tears, and headed for the glass case with a heavy heart.
The Mirror Arcane was gone.
Chapter Twenty-One
I can’t say that it was pandemonium after that, because it wasn’t. A strange calm settled over me, almost like a cool mist.
I stood in the ballroom for a long time, turning round and round. Maybe if I kept looking I would see, not missing, but misplaced. I knew it wasn’t like that, but in my heart I wanted it to be.
Carefully, I touched the glass case. The other artifacts - a scepter that shone in rainbow colors when I touched it, parchments, jewelry, and even a rock - were all still there. Only the Mirror was gone. My whole body was trembling; I had failed. I’d been so busy with Tactical and my friends that the Mirror had slipped away. We had thought Vale would come for it while it was dark and the students were at Tactical, but the Mirror had been taken in broad daylight.
Unless I was watched all the time, how could the thief know I wasn’t at home? It was a question worthy of Elam.
One thing was sure, I needed help.
I quickly went through the list of senior paranormals I could ask. There was always the option of sneaking off campus and talking to Dacer, but I needed to talk to someone now and I had no idea where Dacer was or how to go about finding him. On campus there was Korba, but he had kept his head down all semester and I could only guess that he wouldn’t be much use. Erikson and Dove both hated me, as did Zervos. Mrs. Swan was now listed as “missing.” I chewed my lip, deep in thought.
Not for the first time that semester I wished that Risper hadn’t disappeared. I had barely seen the other committee members, but now I needed to talk to them, or at least to Oliva, who, I knew, cared about what happened to the paranormals despite the fact that he was a pixie. He wasn’t perfect, but he would have to do.
Without even bothering to go up to my room I set off for Oliva’s house. Some professors, like Zervos, lived in the dorms, but the ones who didn’t, and the committee members, all had their own apartments or houses. I nearly ran all the way to Oliva’s, my nervous energy and adrenaline propelling me forward.
Oliva’s place was in a garden. I had never been there before, but even at that time of year all the flowers were in bloom. I stopped to sniff a particularly beautiful one the color of peaches, with a crystal blue center, and I also felt the warmth that had been perceptible from the moment I stepped onto Oliva’s property. It was as if I was taking in the sun’s rays so that I could bloom too. I quickly took off my coat so I wouldn’t start sweating like a pig.
Oliva’s house was painted green, with darker green for the shutters and a white door. Idyllic didn’t begin to describe it. There was a stone path leading up to the front door, lined with more flowers.
“Nice place, don’t you think?” Oliva’s voice asked. “Now my family knows why I want to stay on as a committee member.”
I turned to see Oliva sitting in a wicker chair, sunning himself. He wore a brim hat, for all the world as if spring had started and winter was over. His clothes were green, as usual, and his ring, far more decorated than the ones worn by the students at Public, blazed as if it had just been shined.
“Please sit,” he said, indicating the wicker chair opposite him. “Dove was supposed to arrive shortly, but I’m sure he’ll be as pleased as ever to see you.” Oliva’s eyes twinkled. He knew Dove wasn’t my biggest fan, although his animosity toward me was nothing compared to that of Zervos.
“Tell me, how was the Cruor party?” He steepled his fingers as I stared at him in shock, and then he gave me a small smile. “Oh, please. Just because the committee members no longer have any power doesn’t mean I have buried my head in the sand.”
I gave him the headlines of the party, minimizing Camilla’s part.
His face remained unreadable as I talked, but when I was finished he nodded and smiled. “Ah, to be young,” he sighed.
The pixie committee member was young, far younger than the other committee members, and his skin was barely green. He was also a bit taller than most pixies, reminding me of Cale. His youthful appearance was what had allowed him to pass as a student when he first came to campus, when he had wanted to “see what there is to see” and find out who was breaking into the Museum of Masks.
It felt like a lifetime ago.
“What can I help you with?” he asked comfortably.
“I, um,” I didn’t want to tell Oliva about the Mirror Arcane. Despite his kindness, I still wasn’t sure I could trust him.
“So, I think something might be missing from Astra. I’m not really sure. It’s a big place, but I was wondering, er, um, er, if there’s surveillance on the place? Or rather, if someone went in and took something, would someone else know that something had been taken?”
Oliva blinked several times. “That sounds complicated,” he murmured. “What was taken?”
“I’m not sure,” I said vaguely. “Stuff just seems moved around.”
“Hum,” said Oliva. “That is a predicament.” He sprang to his feet. “Tea?” he offered, grabbing a steeping pot that sat on the little side table next to his chair. I could see leaves floating around in the water. Next to the pot was a collection of teacups.
“Um, sure,” I said hesitantly. Oliva handed me some piping hot tea and I cradled it, enjoying the warmth. “Sip would love this,” I said. “She loves tea.”
“I believe I’ve seen her in the mornings inhaling it,” said Oliva with amusement. “She’s a tough one, that werewolf.”
“Yeahhh,” I said. “So, Astra?”
“It’s very hard to sneak into Astra,” said Oliva. “And I know nothing about surveillance. I just run this place.” He spread his hands wide to indicate Public. Obviously he was joking. He was as much a prisoner of Vale as I was.
Oliva took his own tea and leaned forward. “I will say this, though,” he murmured, his eyes intent on my face. “You either have to have permission to enter Astra, or you have to be an elemental. If something is missing, you should probably look close to home.”
“Mrs. Swan,” I started to say, but Oliva shook his head vigorously, so hard that his hat went askew.
“Ah, I didn’t realize you had a visitor.”
Dove’s silky voice came from behind me, and I swiveled in my chair to look at the vampire committee member. Dove wasn’t that different from Zervos, just more contained. I hadn’t spoken to him since he had slammed the doors to Public in my face.
“Ms. Rollins,” he said, and inclined his head. “Finally learned your lesson about what happens when you disregard what I say, have you?” He was, of course, referring to his and Professor Erikson’s orders to my friends and me to keep away from Public this semester. If only we had followed them I would be with Keller now.
“Charlotte, is there anything else I can help you with?” Oliva asked quietly. I was pretty sure the word help was a stretch. He hadn’t told me anything other than that the Mirror was impossible to steal, which I already knew. And yet it was gone. I said a quick goodbye and hurried away. But it was hard, because it interested me that Dove and Oliva were meeting. They had never seemed to be big fans of each other, and especially now that Vale didn’t want paranormals cooperating with eac
h other, it seemed odd that they were getting together in this quiet garden.
I glanced over my shoulder once. Dove had taken the seat I had just vacated and was already deep in conversation with Oliva. I wondered what they were talking about. Dove met my eyes and I quickly looked away.
Then, also surprisingly, I bumped into tiny Professor Korba. At first I started. I didn’t have him as a professor this semester, and I missed him. I also had barely seen him around campus. I’d heard Zervos talking and had thought that Korba might be keeping to himself in protest because he didn’t approve of how Vale was running things. I’d been glad to hear it, because that made two of us. Luckily, neither Professor Korba or I wanted to talk. We exchanged hurried greetings and then passed each other.
Obviously certain among the senior paranormals on campus were having a secret meeting I had stumbled on, which was just fine with me. Hopefully they were planning to overthrow Vale. I supported that and I wanted them distracted, so that I could search for the Mirror peace.
On my way to Astra I bumped into Cale. Like Korba, and come to think of it like most pixies, he hadn’t been around much this semester. The only pixie I had seen much of was Camilla, and she was the one I really didn’t want to see at all.
His eyes widened in surprise as he looked at me, but he gave me a pleasant smile and pushed his shock of red hair out of his eyes.
“How are you?” he asked. “Can I walk you home?”
“You sure Camilla won’t mind?” I asked icily. For most of high school I’d had a crush on Cale, who was cool and popular and good at everything, and who never returned the favor. I hadn’t minded so much. Crushes from afar were easier anyhow: you couldn’t get hurt, or at least so I had thought. But I’d been wrong. When I arrived at Public my crush Cale was dating a girl named Camilla Van Rothson, who had gone from bad to worse and worse again.
“Haven’t seen you much lately,” he said, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans.
“Yeah,” I said. “We don’t have any classes together this semester.”
“Evan got chosen as the alternate for the Glories,” he commented. “Maybe I’ll be put on your team if . . . .”
“If something happens to one of my teammates?”
I hated the thought. They were all my friends. Well, okay, Vanni wasn’t. I tolerated her, and unlike Lisabelle I didn’t wish ill on her. But we weren’t close.
“Yeah,” he said. “I mean, that’s not what I’m hoping for. It’s better than being on the Glories, though. Camilla and I broke up. For good this time.”
I stopped dead in my tracks, not sure how to take that latest bit of news. I mean, my insides were definitely doing this rudimentary happy dance - I wasn’t much of a dancer - but I had Keller now. Okay, so I didn’t technically have Keller at this point; technically we’d broken up. But if he tried to date any other girl I’d sic Lisabelle on her. Seriously, though, who’s keeping track?
“Oh?” I tried to be casual. “Why?”
Cale shrugged. “She’s changed,” he said. “She didn’t used to be so. . . .”
“Evil? Rotten? Horrible? Slime Dweller?”
Cale laughed nervously. “Tell me how you really feel.”
I shrugged, delighting in my newfound confidence even with a guy who had once made my knees weak.
“Lots of paranormals are trying to kill me,” I said. “I don’t have time to be nice.”
He laughed outright at that. “What was your excuse before?”
I couldn’t help it. I grinned. It was nice to talk to an old friend, just comforting to be with someone you’ve known for so long you don’t have to try so hard.
Cale looked off into the distance, studying the skyline. “She used to be so thoughtful. She used to care about other paranormals. She’s forgotten about all that. Now all she cares about is her own survival. She claimed she cared about me, too, but I honestly don’t think she does. At least not really.”
I wanted to say something sympathetic, but I wasn’t sure what, so I settled on the obvious. “My mom used to say that we all had to make mistakes in relationships, because then we could really appreciate it when something good came along.”
Cale eyed me wistfully. “I wish I hadn’t make a mistake, though. I loved her. I wanted to get it right the first time.”
“Yeah,” I said. “I asked my mom about that.” I remembered when we had that conversation. She had gotten a far-off look in her eye and smiled, but all she’d said was, “That’s good too.”
“Well, this is my turn,” said Cale, standing in front of the path to Volans. “Don’t be a stranger.” He gave me a playful chuck to the chin and I laughed. “You’re one to talk.”
He grinned. “Hey, I don’t have a girlfriend anymore. Shouldn’t be a problem.” At one point I would have been overjoyed that Cale was single, but right now I had important things, like the missing Mirror, to worry about, and though I wished Cale well, that’s about as far as it went.
But I still watched him walk away and kept gazing in that direction, lost in memories, for a long time after he disappeared.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Sip and Lisabelle were already waiting for me in the fire study. I was glad I’d spent the previous semester practicing my abilities with fire; at the moment they felt like a very useful aspect of my powers.
The instant I saw them I threw up my hands in despair.
“Hi,” said Sip, scanning my face. “Where were you? We thought you were in the library, but Lisabelle said we shouldn’t go up there without you.”
“We thought it might scare the ghost, which is hilarious, because he’s already dead,” added Lisabelle. “Imagine what I could do if I were already dead!”
“Somehow I’m not finding it difficult,” said Sip, and then to me, “What’s wrong?”
“To answer your first question, I went to see Oliva. I was hoping he would tell me about spying on Astra, but he didn’t seem to know anything.” I gave a heavy sigh as my friends waited. Sip was sitting placidly on the couch, but as usual Lisabelle was pacing around the room. She hated to sit and was almost always standing and ready to go.
“Why do you care about that now?” Lisabelle prompted.
“The Mirror Arcane is gone,” I said heavily. The feeling of failure I had been pushing away since I made the discovery threatened to overwhelm me. I couldn’t help but think that a better elemental would never have let this happen.
I was in the wrong life. I wasn’t a hero. I wasn’t even brave.
My friends had very different reactions to my news. Sip exploded in a shower of tiny werewolf activity. She cried out and stomped her foot. She demanded to go to the ballroom and see for herself, and then she somewhat returned to her everyday self.
“This is most definitely a situation that calls for reinforcements. We need all the help we can get,” she said, looking wildly around.
“Meaning we should get more wands, a few powders, and some explosives?” Lisabelle said. She was leaning against the bookcase in her customary black, as usual not appearing particularly concerned. I wished I had her calm.
“Meaning I’m going to get a cup of tea,” said Sip, disappearing into the kitchen. “Don’t say anything interesting while I’m gone.”
“Than how am I supposed to talk?” Lisabelle said.
“Use all those non-verbal cues you’re so good at,” Sip called over her shoulder. Lisabelle stuck her tongue out at Sip.
“Lisabelle, this is serious,” I said. “If the Nocturns have the Mirror, all they need to do is find -” I was going to say Elam, because he had the Map, but Lisabelle held up her hand and shook her head and I stopped mid-sentence.
“We’ll get it back,” she said. “One way or another it won’t leave campus. I don’t think it was Vale who took it anyway.”
“You don’t?” I asked incredulously. “How can you possibly know that?”
Sometimes she was maddeningly calm.
Lisabelle shook her head and push
ed off the bookcase as Sip came back into the room carrying a tray with three teacups on it.
“You are both having some,” said Sip, as she begun to pour.
“What if I don’t want tea?” Lisabelle said. “What if I want black tea?”
“You do and too bad,” said Sip, glowering. “It will make me feel better to see you drinking.”
“I think you have that backward,” said Lisabelle. “Usually people think it makes them feel better to drink.”
Sip snorted. “We are paranormals, not people, and that’s not the case with us.”
“I’d still give anything to see you drunk,” said Lisabelle wistfully.
“Anything?” Sip asked slyly.
Lisabelle grinned. “Maybe not anything.”
“I can’t believe you two are so calm about this,” I said throwing up my arms. “The Mirror is GONE! I FAILED!”
Sip made soothing sounds. “I mean, it has to still be on campus. The senior paranormals have the place surrounded. People can’t get in or out without their knowing it. If they try, Lough will catch them and tell us about it, and as long as the Mirror is on campus we can find it. Can you two walk and drink tea at the same time?”
When we both gave her skeptical looks she said, “Try.”
“But what if they use some spell to magically transport it away?” I said quickly. “Those exist. You’ve probably read every book about them that there is.”
Sip nodded. “They do exist, but there’s no way whoever has the Mirror would risk something like that. If they have the Mirror, they aren’t letting it out of their sight. If they put it into some tricky magical spell, who knows what could go wrong.”
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